Dear Lifehacker,
One of my favorite features in iOS 6 is the ability to (finally!) use FaceTime over my 3G connection, but I keep hearing that some carriers are going to make you pay for it, or make you subscribe to a specific data plan. What's the deal? Can I use FaceTime over 3G or not?

Sincerely,
Fond of FaceTime

Dear FF,
There were some rumors awhile back that some carriers may charge users for FaceTime, but that isn't true (at least for now). However, your ability to use FaceTime over data does depend on a few things, including what carrier you're on, what data plan you subscribe to, and what phone you have. Here's everything you need to know:

If You're On Verizon: You'll be able to use FaceTime over 3G or 4G, without extra charge, no matter what data plan you're on. However, as with all carriers, it will only work if you have an iPhone 4S or above. iPhone 4 users and below are left out in the cold. And, as always, remember that if you've upgraded your phone in the past few months—say, to the iPhone 5—you won't have unlimited data anymore, so be sure to track how much you're using.

If You're On AT&T: This is where things get trickier. AT&T isn't charging for FaceTime, but they dorequire you to be on one of their Mobile Share plans if you want to use FaceTime over your data connection. So you'll need to sign up for one of those if you want to FaceTime over 3G or 4G. And, as previously stated, you'll need an iPhone 4S or 5 to take advantage, since iOS 6 won't have FaceTime over data on the iPhone 4 and below.

Of course, if you don't meet all of the above criteria, you'll still be able to use FaceTime over Wi-Fi as usual, just not on 3G or 4G. If you need to video chat over your data connection, you could always just use Skype instead. After all, more people use Skype than FaceTime, so it's worth having on your phone anyway.